Heavy Seas Releasing Altimore Brewed with Maryland’s Own Monocacy Hop

From Heavy Seas:

The Monocacy Hop – a unique Maryland hop variety

Heavy Seas Beer is thrilled to announce a very special beer release – "Altimore" – an Altbier brewed with the Monocacy hop.

A Genetically Unique Hop: Discovered in the late 1960s by Dr. Ray Edigar, the Monocacy hop remained a hidden gem until recently. Unaware of its rarity and Maryland origin, Dr. Edigar grew the hop in his garden for years. He recently partnered with researchers at the University of Maryland Extension to test the plant’s DNA-sequence, and when the results came back, they learned that the hop was completely genetically unique and native to Maryland. The Monocacy hop is distinguished by its distinct chemical profile & adaptability to Maryland’s hot, humid climate.

Brewing with the Monocacy Hop: On September 21st, Heavy Seas Beer visited the Western Maryland Research & Education Center, where the Maryland-native hop is currently growing, to witness the harvesting of the Monocacy hop and collect hand-picked wet hops directly from the vine. Immediately post-harvest, the Heavy Seas team returned to their Halethorpe-based brewery to brew a batch of beer using this hop. 

“The Monocacy hop offers spicy, herbaceous, floral aromatics. For our inaugural brew, we chose to craft an Altbier, a traditional German beer style, using whole-flower Monocacy hops for bittering and finishing, which should provide a really nice aroma to this beer,” says Chris Leonard, Heavy Seas Brewmaster and Director of Operations.

"Altimore" launches on October 20th exclusively at the Heavy Seas Taproom, available on draft and crowlers for to-go purchases. 
​More Monocacy-hop beers from Heavy Seas expected in 2024, including packaged products & market distribution.

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Follow all the excitement on social media @HeavySeasBeer

AND… don’t miss Maryland Public Television’s segment on the Monocacy hop airing on February 6, 2024.